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Burroughs: A Brief History

“We must find out what words are and how they function. They become images when written down, but images of words repeated in the mind and not of the image of the thing itself," is a quote made famous by William Burroughs. He was from the East side circle of “The Beats” and lived a interesting and intruging life. He contributed many different types of works to the world and appriately falls into the category of “The Beats.” Burroughs was born in St. Louis, Missouri on Feburary 5, 1914. Unlike the other “Beats” he was born into comfort. His grandfather had invented the adding machiene and his uncle had close ties with Hitler as well as other famous historical figures. Despite his background and the fact that he was considered intelligent, he was an outcast among other children and was labled a “pr

oblem child.” He was interested in drugs, homosexuality, trickery, and non-convention from the time that he was little and said to be called an early rebel. Burroughs’ family moved to New Mexico where he attended school until he dropped out. Later he attended Harvard and also lived in Chicago and then moved to New York City where his life as an artist really began. He moved to NYC in 1943 and this is where he met some of the other famous “Beats,” such as: Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Edie Parker, and his future common-law wife, Joan Vollmer. They were all seekers of a new philosophy, and inspired by Rimbaud's poetry (particularly Seasons in Hell) attempted to put their literary and spiritual quests into a label or definition. Burroughs was older than the rest, and they mentored his writing style. He was